


Echoes of Skipping Stones

by HathorAroha



Category: Life Is Strange 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Redemption Ending (Life is Strange 2)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:14:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26337811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HathorAroha/pseuds/HathorAroha
Summary: If Daniel is completely honest with himself, he’s worried. He was already worried enough before about Sean going out on his own across America just three months after being freed from prison, but after having seen him completely break down sobbing last night at the campfire...he’s definitely worried now.... Three months just seemed too short a time for Sean to make his way down the west coast, even if this time, he wasn’t on the run, and could drive across the continent as a free man.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 7





	Echoes of Skipping Stones

If Daniel is completely honest with himself, he’s worried. He was already worried enough before about Sean going out on his own across America just three months after being freed from prison, but after having seen him completely break down sobbing last night at the campfire...he’s definitely worried now. Course, Sean would stubbornly insist he’d be fine, but even Lyla was worried about him; she and Daniel had conversed more than a few times over the phone or a coffee during their once-a-week catch-ups at their favourite cafe. Three months just seemed too short a time for Sean to make his way down the west coast, even if this time, he wasn’t on the run, and could drive across the continent as a free man. 

And his thoughts now, as he sits with knees to chest, arms wrapped around them, staring at the campfire--now nothing but ash and charred remains of logs--are even more consumed with worry about how Sean is going to make it on his own. Especially since he only had one eye left--even fifteen years later, Daniel  _ still  _ couldn’t help but think how if he’d never gone on the heist, Sean would still have two--meaning any old racist white asshole could sneak up on him once they figured out his blindspot. And he knew there were more than enough white assholes down in what he recalls Brody calling “redneck land”. 

_ Is he going to have enough money for food? Petrol? Even with the money I gave him? What if someone takes it? What if someone--Daniel, stop. He’s going to be  _ fine.

Daniel can’t help but wonder if Sean worried this much about him when they had spent all those months on the road, perpetually on the run from police. He still remembered how Sean had comforted him in this cave after nightmares and having inadvertently eaten those red berries, and last night, it was  _ Daniel  _ comforting  _ Sean  _ when the latter broke down in tears, unable to take all the emotions and memories overwhelming him at once. 

_ And that was just  _ here,  _ in this forest. What about the rest of the west coast? Especially...Nevada?  _

To this day, Daniel can’t help walking just a little quicker if he has to pass by a church, but at least he can walk past one now without feeling like he’s going to devolve into a panic attack. It wasn’t long ago, a few years at most, that he can walk on the same street as a church without having to cross the road. Still...sometimes he wonders if he’s  _ ever  _ going to be completely over what happened in Nevada. 

_ Dude, stop thinking about that. Not like anyone will recognise him as my brother now anyway.  _

Not with a new glass eye, a full-on beard Daniel wishes he could have (but of course he gets the hand-me-down version of a “beard”--even his  _ genes  _ are hand-me-downs), and fifteen years of prison life changing and aging him well beyond his thirty-two years. 

Daniel looks over again at Sean, still sleeping curled up on the ground, facing him. Sean had fallen into a deep sleep minutes after he’d had calmed down from his breakdown, curling up on the ground in this same exact position as he is this morning. He still remembers how Sean had been the one shaking him awake the next morning before continuing their journey, and how Daniel had been the one sleeping like a log. 

At first, Daniel resists the urge to shake him awake, even though the sunrise over the forest is stunning, and he’s sure Sean would appreciate it after the emotional night he’d had. Then again...Sean deserved at least one last better impression of the forest before parting ways. And what better than the sunrise over the river in the distance and the rays filtering through autumn-painted leaves still clinging on to the trees? 

But it turns out he doesn’t have to wake him after all; Sean’s eyes open as he turns over to stretch out on the ground, feet narrowly missing the spent campfire. Pulling his hands behind his head, Sean looks up at Daniel. 

“Morning, Sean,” Daniel greets him, nodding out at the sunrise. “Nice morning to get up this early. How was your sleep? No bad dreams?” 

“Yeah,” Sean assures, “Think a sleep helped.” 

“Sleep’s good for that. You’re looking a bit better too.” 

Sean slowly sits up, crossing his legs, glancing over at Daniel before staring down at his hands. 

“Sorry,” he says, “I don’t know what happened last night. I just--”

Daniel places a hand on his shoulder, gripping it tight. “Hey, Sean, you’ve got nothing to be sorry for. I’m actually amazed you’d lasted this long without a major breakdown.” 

“Really?” 

Daniel nods. “Yeah, really, Sean. You clearly needed that.” 

Sean clasps his hands together, knuckles white, lifting his head to look out at the river gently whispering in the distance. Daniel can see he does look a little more relaxed after last night, his shoulders and face a little less tense. 

“Just--” Sean starts, pauses as though to consider his next words. “Just, don’t tell anyone okay?” 

Daniel shakes his head, wraps his arm around Sean’s shoulders, his older brother leaning into him. “Course not--but you know there’s no shame in it, right?” 

“Yeah, course I do. It’s just…” Sean lets out a deep sigh. “This forest--the memories--it was all too much, you know?” His voice is fragile, like it’s about to break, like the forest is still overwhelming him. 

_ I don’t know how ready he really is for...for going back down the west coast. He should stay a little longer, until he’s actually ready. Until he’s strong enough to face it all. Not that he isn’t--it’s still early days, right? And all alone? He’s so sure he can handle it, but-- _

“Daniel?” 

Daniel shakes himself out of his thoughts. “Yeah, I’m listening.” 

“There’s something on your mind, I can tell.” 

“Huh? No, just thinking a lot.” 

“I might’ve spent half my life in prison, but I can still tell when something’s bothering you.” Sean turns to him with a little smile. “You can’t fool your big brother that easily.” 

“No really, I just....” Daniel lets his voice trail off, lets go of Sean, starts to stand up, being careful not to smack his head on the cave roof like he had yesterday evening. “Mind a little walk? Just down to the river?” 

“Won’t say no to one.” 

Daniel waits just outside the cave until Sean joins him, and they both begin a brisk walk down toward the riverbank. He recalls how Sean had joined him at that very same riverbank and taught him to skip stones.

“Remember when--” Both start to say and then stop abruptly. 

Sean’s face breaks into the ghost of a grin. “Oh, so you do remember skipping stones? Is that--”

“That’s what I was about to ask too,” Daniel confirms, stopping to pick up a flat rock, carrying it in his hands. “Think you remember how to do it?” 

“Do  _ you _ ? I was the one who taught you, remember?” 

“Course I remember. Just watch.” 

“With or without powers?” 

“Without powers, duh. Otherwise it’s cheating, right? Watch me.” 

They’ve reached the edge of the riverbank, Daniel stepping back a little to give himself space to aim the rock at the water. He can still hear Sean’s voice--fifteen years younger, lighter, with more innocence, less trauma--teaching him how to skip a stone. 

“Ready when you are, Daniel.” 

With a quick flick of the wrist, Daniel lets the stone fly, watches it skip once, twice, three, and then four times before it sinks out of sight. He turns to Sean with a grin. 

“See? Still pretty good even without using my powers, right?” 

Sean nods, bends down to pick up a stone himself, coming over to join Daniel. 

“Hope I’m not too rusty,” he comments, “Prison didn’t exactly give me many chances to refine my stone skipping skills.”

“Maybe it’s like riding a bike? Once you know how, you don’t forget?” 

“Let’s try this.” 

Sean draws his arm back, eye fixed on the water, and after a few moments’ concentration, quickly flicks his wrist forward, the stone skipping once before sinking underwater. He turns to Daniel with a little shrug. 

“Not bad, Sean. Really.” 

Sean is silent for a long moment before turning to face Daniel, the river behind him, folding his arms. 

“Daniel. I know you’re worried about me. I can tell.” 

Daniel stayed quiet, allowing himself to take a moment to think on his response. Sean was right, he was definitely concerned, that he couldn’t deny. If he thought that Sean would never notice, clearly that assumption was wrong; even after fifteen years in prison, his older brother could still read him like a book. 

“Yeah,” he admits, “You’re right, I am.” 

“We’ve talked about this before.” 

“We have. Still don’t know if you should be going off so soon down the west coast, considering what happened back then.” 

Sean bends down, grabs another flat rock, turning it over and over in his hands, his turn to mull over his own response, if he was even thinking of one. 

“It’s been, what, three months,” Daniel continues, watching a flock of birds flying over the river in the distance, reaching for the rising sun. “What if something happens? Like those assholes you told me about that you met in Nevada?”

Sean looks up, the rock still in his hands. “You think they’ll recognise me like this? One eye, beard, fifteen years older? Nah.” 

“Still…” 

“And I thought I was freaking out back then.” 

“When?” Daniel’s brow furrows. “In Nevada?” 

“Everywhere, especially that cabin. You remember it?” 

“Of course I do!” Daniel winces at the unintentional sharpness of his voice. He dials it down a notch. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out like that. Still remember what happened to Mushroom.” 

Sean sighs, casts the rock into the river; it does a noble attempt at a half-skip before disappearing without much fanfare. 

“Yeah, so do I. Sorry if I brought up bad memories.”

“Nah, it’s fine. I just...yeah. You never forget your first furry best friend.” 

“Hey, I don’t blame you.” 

“And what about…” Daniel steels himself before saying the name, “Havenpoint?” 

“Dude, you think I’m going back there? Or  _ want  _ to go back there?”

Somehow, hearing this brings Daniel some relief. 

“I’ll take that as a no.” 

“Seriously, Daniel, I’m going to be fine. You ever heard of cellphones or the internet? I can always call you or someone else if anything happens, right?” 

“But you’ll be alone.” 

Sean falls back into silence, his face taking on a thoughtful look, as though recalling something. 

“Dunno if you remember, but I’ve never forgotten what Brody once told me: there’s a difference between alone and lonely.” 

This is news to Daniel. “What did he mean by that?” 

“Alone is not the same as lonely. I like my own company, you know.” 

“Spoken like a true artist,” Daniel quips, grinning a little over at Sean.

“It’s 2032, remember? Technology is more than capable of helping us keep in touch.” 

“Yeah,” Daniel says, levitating a couple rocks, making them dart and chase each other over the river’s surface, “But what if someone hurts you? What if you get hurt? You won’t have my power to protect you. And...” he flounders, hoping he won’t offend Sean with his next reason. “And you have one eye. You’re like...half blind.” 

Sean lets out a loud sigh, shaking his head before walking over to Daniel, placing both hands firmly on the latter’s shoulders. The two rocks drop into the river, two quiet splashes lost in the sudden squawking of birds overhead. 

“Dude. You’re going to get grey hairs by your next birthday if you keep this up. You’re worrying more than  _ I  _ did about  _ you  _ and that’s saying something.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. Really. I’ll be okay. Promise.” 

“You sure you can keep that promise?” 

Sean squares his shoulders, stands up a little taller, hands still on Daniel’s shoulders. “I  _ swear _ . And I’m not leaving forever. I’ll come back. And we have friends all along the west coast, don’t we?” 

Daniel has to admit he’s right on this count. 

“Yeah, we do.” 

“And I have Away in Arizona. Where our mom lives, right?” Sean lets go of Daniel, lets his hands fall back by his sides. “And who knows, I might run into old faces again. Cassidy, Finn, Hannah...hell, maybe even Brody. And yes, I know you hate Cass--”

Daniel shakes his head. “Not anymore, I swear. I’ve grown past that, you know.” 

“We’ll see,” Sean remarks with his old lop-sided grin that again makes Daniel think of how cheerier his older brother used to be back before everything. “We’ll see.” 

“Shut up,” Daniel mumbles, but he can’t help a grin back. 

“Hell, I’d be thrilled to meet Chloe and Max, if they’re anywhere near me on the road.” 

“You’d love them,” Daniel assures with full confidence, “And Chloe likes weed too, just so you know.” 

A laugh from Sean, one that almost,  _ almost  _ sounds like his old laugh, but it’s a hollow echo of what it used to be. 

“I think my weed phase is over, Daniel.” 

“She might convert you back, you know. And Max is really amazing with photography. And really nice. They have a caravan they take on the road a lot, with plenty of room for a guest as well.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind. Daniel, there’s no way I’m missing out on reuniting with all our old friends. You know that, right?” 

“Course I do.” 

“Chris sounds like he’s got a busy life going on, with his graphic design and everything.” 

“Yeah, he’s getting his Masters in that at the moment. Keeping him on his toes.” 

“I can imagine.” A short pause before Sean continues on. “And Jake, right? He’s still on the west coast? And his sister, Sarah-Lee?” 

Daniel nods. “Yeah, she’s still into her surfing. She’s teaching high-school kids how to surf these days. She won’t let you go anywhere without making you surf at least a few times first, so you know.” 

“Not sure how I feel about that.” 

“You’ll see. She’ll convince you soon enough.” 

“Did she get you surfing too?” 

“Of course. And loved every minute of it.” Daniel levitates more rocks, turning aside to cast them at the river, making them swirl over the rapids. “It’s fun, you’ll see.” 

“And you  _ know _ Lyla will text me about once an hour to make sure I’m okay, right?” 

“Yeah. She’s great like that.” 

Sean’s voice takes a note of good-natured ribbing. “Still have that crush on her?” 

“Nah, not anymore. We’re still close though.” 

“Course. She’s the best friend you could ask for, right?” Sean turns to watch the rocks dancing through the air, hands jammed in his pockets. “It was...it was amazing seeing her when I got out.” 

“There was no way she was going to miss seeing you finally come out of there a free man.” 

“Yeah, no fucking way. That’s our Lyla alright. Still worried?” 

“Well…” Daniel has to think, distracting himself with the rocks he’s dipping into one of the rapids, the sound of rock on rock brief staccatos in the dawn air. “Yeah, sorry Sean, I can’t help that. You’re only three months out of prison, and you’re my big brother.” 

Sean sighs, nods. “I know. I get it. But it’s not like I’ll be on the road forever. I’ll come back. Promise.” 

“Not before you promise, like really,  _ really  _ promise me you’ll take care on the road. And that you know you can call me any time. Like, literally, any time. Three in the morning, I don’t care. If you need to talk, like ever, just do it. Got it?” 

“I hear you.” 

“You better promise.” 

Sean becomes so still, deep in some thought or memory, brow furrowing again, that Daniel begins to think he isn’t going to answer, before he does. 

“Remember that day, back in that motel? The one Brody gave us a room for a night?” 

“Yeah?” 

“And how you made me promise never to lie to you again?” 

“Like it was yesterday.” 

“And I didn’t break that promise, right?” 

“No. Or if you did, I don’t remember.” 

“And how serious you were about me keeping that promise? That I’ll never lie to you again.” 

“I…I think I remember.” 

“Well...that’s me right now, okay? I promise, I’ll take care of myself out there.  _ And  _ I’ll call you if I need to talk.” 

“And you know Lyla would say the same too, as would Chris, don’t you? If you can’t reach me, swear you’ll reach out to them if you need to.” 

“I swear. And that’s no lie either. You trust me on this, right?” 

Daniel lets the rocks plop into the river, putting an arm around Sean’s shoulders, feeling him do the same in return. It’s a strange feeling, thinking that in a distant October, over a decade ago, they were standing on the very same riverbank, Daniel trying to skip stones and catch fish, and Sean nearby, as always, making sure he was okay. That he was safe. And now they’re adults, standing near the same stretch of river, with its skipping stone rocks, and fish circling under the surface, a thin film of water shielding them from the sun and from boys who wanted to catch a fish like in the movies. 

“Of course, Sean. I’ll always trust you. That’s never changed, even in fifteen years. Diaz brothers, always, right?” 

Sean’s hand tightens on Daniel’s shoulder, drawing the latter into a semblance of a one-armed hug. 

“Always, Daniel. Always.” 

He still worries for his older brother, for the big wolf in their story, anyway.

He wonders if he ever will not worry for Sean, a free man, yes, but still with a youth’s outlook on the big, wild, wild world they lived in.

A sixteen-nearly-seventeen-year-old’s look at the world around them, even despite his thirty-two years. 

But Sean is right: Daniel has to trust him now. 

And he does, he  _ does  _ trust him. 

It was time for the big wolf to discover himself now, find out who he is even despite his past, the way Daniel had already done during his own teens and early twenties.

* * *

_ And so the little wolf put his trust in the big wolf that he will be fine. That he will keep his promise. That one day, some day, maybe not today, he will be safe. _

_ He will heal from the past. _

_ He will never, ever be alone again. _


End file.
